New York power player does not recommend NYRI

By FRITZ MAYER

NEW YORK STATE — The agency that oversees New York’s electrical grid does not see a need for new power lines in the Upper Delaware Valley “at this time.”

The New York Independent System Operator (NYISO) issued a report last week recommending steps that need to be taken to meet the state’s electricity needs through 2015, and the power line project proposed by New York Regional Interconnect (NYRI) was not among the recommendations.

According to Ken Klapp, a spokesman for NYISO, there are two types of projects that can be undertaken to address the rising demands for electricity: market solutions and regulated solutions. The NYRI project is proposed as a regulated solution. Klapp said NYISO prefers to rely on market solutions whenever possible, because unlike regulated projects, market projects are not directly subsidized by ratepayers. At present, Klapp said, there are enough market-based plans in the works to meet the growing needs of NY consumers.

The NYISO report recommended several projects to help improve energy infrastructure. Among them were three new power plants, two in New York City and one on Long Island.

NYISO also recommended that lawmakers in Albany reinstate the Article X law, which regulates the siting of new power plants. Article X expired in 2002 and has not been reauthorized because lawmakers have been unable to agree on changes needed in the law.

Senator John Bonacic, an active opponent of the NYRI project, said Assembly Speaker Sheldon Silver had effectively blocked Article X reauthorization. Bonacic said that Silver is a Democrat who represents New York City. The assembly passed an Article X reauthorization bill in June, which observers say has no chance to become law in its current form.

Other NYISO recommendations include upgrading existing power lines in the grid, as well as the installation of new lines, including one that will connect Long Island with New Jersey by an underground cable.

The nonprofit company PJM operates the grid that covers New Jersey, as well as 12 other states, including parts or all of Delaware, Illinois, Indiana, Kentucky, Maryland, Michigan, North Carolina, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Tennessee, Virginia and West Virginia.

Ray Dotter, a spokesman for PJM, said there are several lines that run between New Jersey and New York, but that those existing lines are already at capacity much of the time. He said the addition of a new line would not be unusual.

The addition of new lines or generating plants to produce more electricity for Long Island and New York City would leave more power available to serve the growing suburbs in the Hudson Valley.

NYISO’s Klapp, however, emphasized that the agency’s recommendations may change based on the next “reliability needs assessment” survey, which is conducted yearly by the agency because the electricity market is rapidly changing. He said the projects that have been recommended in the report released on August 23 are already in the planning stages or beyond, but if those projects should not go forward for some reason, the agency would reconsider the need for other projects, such as the NYRI power lines.

Further, he said that this report is not binding on the New York Public Service Commission (PSC) and that NYRI is free to move forward with its permitting application.